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Help: Chemical to clean lens internals of old grease
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 18, 2017 9:44 am    Post subject: Help: Chemical to clean lens internals of old grease Reply with quote
Question,

Lets say I want to do a CLA and use a Chemical to clean inner body of lens of old grease & stubborn dirt.

I remove everything, take it apart, and clean up the glass. Now since every thing is in pieces, do I just soak the metal body it in 3% hydrogen peroxide? Would it be enough to remove old grease?

I noticed when I use stronger chemicals to soak like 91% rubbing alcohol or strong camera lens cleaner, paint from inside the body gets removed on some lens.

Are there paint safe choices to clean the inside of lens and remove grease.

Last edited by AndyPham7 on Thu Oct 19, 2017 12:22 am; edited 4 times in total


PostPosted: Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Unless you keep your camera in a clean room, spores will just float back in after cleaning. As spores are everywhere they will not attack\grow in camera gear if kept in dry conditions.


PostPosted: Wed Oct 18, 2017 1:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Excalibur wrote:
Unless you keep your camera in a clean room, spores will just float back in after cleaning. As spores are everywhere they will not attack\grow in camera gear if kept in dry conditions.


This.


PostPosted: Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
ok thanks, changed the question so I can get an answer. What chemical is safe to clean the inside body and to remove old grease of lens that doesn't remove paint?

Rubbing alcohol and lens cleaner removes paint so I cant use those, any alternatives?


PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2017 3:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I recommend naphtha, aka lighter fluid. It shouldn't hurt the paint and it is a decent solvent for the grease. I would flush the areas more than once with it. As many times as it takes.

Yes, naphtha is flammable, but its combustibility is very low and it doesn't evaporate very quickly, so it's safe to use, even indoors. I would use a well-ventilated area, though.


PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2017 10:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
cooltouch wrote:
I recommend naphtha, aka lighter fluid. It shouldn't hurt the paint and it is a decent solvent for the grease. I would flush the areas more than once with it. As many times as it takes.

Yes, naphtha is flammable, but its combustibility is very low and it doesn't evaporate very quickly, so it's safe to use, even indoors. I would use a well-ventilated area, though.


That depends very much on the naphtha used. Petrochemical naphtha is every bit as flammable as petrol/gasoline (but not on sale to the general public - we sell 1-2 ship loads a month to other oil companies)
Some solvent naphthas are high in aromatics & will probably remove paint quite effectively...

Lighter fluid (or Coleman fuel) should be OK, it's typically low aromatic so not too aggressive a solvent (actually designed to be non toxic, clean burning without excessive flammability) but naphtha is a much more generic term.


PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 8:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
All I know is, it's the naphtha I buy at the big box stores, like Home Depot and Lowes, in 1 qt cans that looks and smells like lighter fluid. I've used it for years with good results. A 1 qt will last you for the rest of your natural life -- for lens cleaning, that is. If you use it for charcoal starter for you grill, for example, well then it won't last as long.

The stuff you're describing indeed sounds like specialized versions. Come to think of it, charcoal starter would probably also work well. It's barely flammable. Which I consider kind of ironic, given its intended use. Same goes for lighter fluid, far as that goes.


PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 12:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I use white spirit. I think it's called naptha in the U.S if you're over there.


PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 12:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Excalibur wrote:
Unless you keep your camera in a clean room, spores will just float back in after cleaning. As spores are everywhere they will not attack\grow in camera gear if kept in dry conditions.


Don't laugh at this Excalibur, but I've switched to using an athletes foot cream when taking mould off lenses (it is very effective at this) and rather than rinse after, just buffing it off. I have this idea in my head that it may continue acting as a slight anti-fungal treatment after you've used it to clean off the mould. I have no idea if it will do this or not - all theory.


PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 9:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Isopropyl alcohol, in pure, restoration grade form, is safe.

https://www.amazon.it/ALCOOL-ISOPROPILICO-DETERGENTE-PULIZIA-ULTRASUONI/dp/B01BVPBG6O/ref=sr_1_3?ie=U

I get this from amazon.it but it is made in Poland so it should be readily available within EU, at least.

Took a course in old weapons and metal restoration from a florentine pro art restorer, we used it also on military helmet paint, usually rubbing alcohol dissolves it, isopropyl didn't.


PostPosted: Mon Oct 23, 2017 3:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I just bought a bottle of 70% isopropyl. Which is about as pure as you'll find in just regular markets and stores around here. 70% isn't too bad, a minimal amount of water will be left after the alcohol vaporizes, and should clean up easily enough. So maybe I'll give it a try next time I need a solvent. Good to know about Amazon as a source for the 100%, though.


PostPosted: Mon Oct 23, 2017 5:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I had a Vivitar 24 f2 in bits the other day, the grease had leached oil over the blades and gummed them solid. I got the glass out and decided to try and dissolve the horrible mess inside the lens without taking the lens apart, I used lighter fuel and a small paint brush and that shifted a lot, but there was still a tight spot on the helicoid, so I squirted a load of 'Elbow Grease' household cleaner in the lens, let it soak for a few minutes then poured boiling water over the lens. That shifted the old grease!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Elbow-Greese-500ml-Purpose-Greaser/dp/B003JSRS9G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1508779098&sr=8-1&keywords=elbow+grease+cleaner

I use this stuff in my garage now, it's as good as any industrial degreaser and hasn't affected any paint or other finish on anything. It's 1 a bottle in Tesco's, can't beat that. Ignore Amazon's prices. Rolling Eyes


PostPosted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 10:11 pm    Post subject: Re: Help: Chemical to clean lens internals of old grease Reply with quote
AndyPham7 wrote:
Lets say I want to do a CLA and use a Chemical to clean inner body of lens of old grease & stubborn dirt.


Hot water and dish soap are your friend.


PostPosted: Fri Oct 27, 2017 10:06 am    Post subject: Re: Help: Chemical to clean lens internals of old grease Reply with quote
Gardener wrote:
Hot water and dish soap are your friend.


I can already tell this is best and actually did this recently because the lighter fluid method looks like a hassle.

Fun discovery, if you used powerful dishwasher soap infused with ammonia (like Dawn) and soak it for more than a minute, it can remove the paint that's inside of cheap soviet lenses. Make sure it's super cheap soap with no added ammonia or bleach!


PostPosted: Fri Oct 27, 2017 3:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I do not actively pursue Soviet lenses, so I would not know, but you can always repaint.
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